1. Field of the Invention
The invention described and claimed herein is generally related to firearms having integrally contained systems for monitoring and displaying the supply of ammunition in the firearm, such as a semiautomatic or automatic pistol or rifle.
2. Description Of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97-1.99
Automatic and semiautomatic firearms do not contain any means for indicating the number of rounds of ammunition contained in the firearm. As a result, a well recognized problem in both competitive and combat shooting situations is the inability of the firearm user to be confidently certain at all times of the number of rounds of ammunition remaining in his firearm, particularly after some ammunition has been expended.
A user will typically know the maximum cartridge capacity of his firearm, and thus will usually know the number of rounds that the firearm initially contains upon loading. Thus, the initial cartridge count is not ordinarily a problem.
After firing the firearm, however, the user will typically be far less certain of the number of rounds remaining. With automatic weapons the user will only have a general idea of the number of rounds remaining after a burst of rounds has been fired from the firearm. Only through experience can a user even estimate how many rounds might be left after firing a burst, and even then such an estimate is only approximate. Nevertheless, in both competitive and combat shooting it is critical that a shooter not overestimate the amount of ammunition remaining in his firearm, and thereby run out of ammunition at a critical moment when it may be necessary to fire. At the same time, tactical considerations dictate that a shooter should make optimum use of his firearm, by using as much ammunition as possible before each reloading. These competing considerations make it desirable for the user to know exactly how much ammunition remains in his firearm at all times.
Even with a semiautomatic weapon, where each cartridge is individually fired by the user, it is frequently difficult to be certain of the number of cartridges remaining. If the semiautomatic weapon contains only a limited number of cartridges, for example a semiautomatic pistol, the user may be able to mentally keep track of the number of cartridges fired, and thereby calculate the number of cartridges remaining. However, during the stress of a combat situation or a competitive shooting event a user will frequently be unable to keep track of the number of cartridges that have been fired and thus will not be certain of the number of cartridges remaining in the firearm, even in the case of pistol having a capacity of on a few rounds.
This lack of certainty, as to the supply of ammunition remaining in the firearm, is a primary limitation on the user's ability to assess and respond to tactical situations where snap decisions must be made whether to shoot, reload, or take other appropriate tactical actions.